Archive for January, 2011

It can be really frustrating to have a system in place to manage your filing or paper work only to find that it is not meeting your needs. What to do? Well, you can throw out the old system and start over or you can modify the exisiting system that actually worked well for you for awhile. When given a choice I always modify the exisiting system. Understand that life is never static. Things change, your needs change, the way you think about things may change, the way you want to retrieve documents may change – be flexible and adapt your system to you. Maybe you have decided that broader categories work better for you. Keep a pad of paper beside your computer and write the name of a broad category down (and the things that category includes) as it occurs to you. Do this for 2 weeks. Then set aside some time to make those changes and you will have tweaked your system to make it work better for you.

Last year I chose a word that would help me to define my goal for the year. My word was persevere. I had some serious challenges to overcome. My mother passed away after losing her battle with acute mylogenous leukemia, I had a nasty accident which resulted in having surgery and a metal plate put in my ankle, to name just a few things… I made the decision that I would persevere. I decided to focus on all the positive things in my life and to work hard to honor my mother. It really helped me to have this word to keep going back to – to remind me of my mission. So, what is my word for this year? Well, towards the end of December I read Elizabeth Hagen’s newsletter. I find she always has something interesting and informative to say. In this particular newsletter Elizabeth was talking about the need to get things done. I believe she said “If it has to be, it’s up to me“. That really resonated with me. I thought to myself how true that statement is. If I really want something to happen I need to make sure it does – it is up to me. Myword this year is: self-reliant. Now, I know I have to delegate some things out. But, instead of delegating and dropping the ball I am going to delegate and plan meetings to check on progress. I am going to set measurable goals and put time limits in place. I am really excited. This is going to be a great year!

Can you think of a word or phrase that will help you with your plan for the year?